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Published: 2013-10-14 20:00:06 +0000 UTC; Views: 1157; Favourites: 46; Downloads: 0
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Description
PharaohGolden Pheasant (Chrysolophus pictus, Goldfasan)
Taken with a Canon EOS 1100D, Tamron AF 70-300mm 4-5.6 Di SP VC USD Lens
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Comments: 30
This is beautiful! There's just common pheasants where I live though. :3
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Thank you!
It's actually the same here - this was a captive one, as we don't have any living in the wild over here. According to wikipedia, however, there are populations of these in England, Wales and southern Scotland. Apart form that, they're native to central China, originally.
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Oh, didn't know that! ^.^ The prettiest birds here that I've seen (in my opinion) would be American Kestrels or Snowy Owls. Unfortunately Snowy Owls only come here during mid-winter, and American Kestrels (also refferred to as Sparrow Hawks) ae pretty uncommon in my area.
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Wow, those are fantastic and beautiful birds of prey! I would love to see a Snowy Owl, for one. There are Eurasian Eagle Owls in these parts, though I have so far only seen traces left behind by them.
As for the Sparrow Hawk, there's the Eurasian variant of it, but I don't recall ever seeing one myself. Even though their numbers have somewhat increased again (after falling drastically due to the use of the pesticide DDT), they still have a somewhat hard time since most of their avian prey has adapted to urban areas.
The closest I ever got to a wild bird of prey was an encounter with a White-tailed Eagle, as seen here: Majestic I
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The Snowy Owls were only in my area last winter, hopefully I can see them again and get a picture this winter! Until then, I'll settle with the variety of small birds around my area. It's good that those birds are coming back, they're most likely good to have around, and hopefully they can adapt as good as they're prey. That eagle is beautiful! I don't have a very good camera (yet) so I can't very well get a bird in flight without it being overly blurry.
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Well, then I'll keep my fingers crossed for you so you can get a good shot of a Snowy Owl this winter
Unfortunately, at the moment it doesn't look like the birds of prey are able to adapt to the increasing urbanization and loss of suitable habitats. However, there are various projects dedicated to helping them, i.e. by putting up tall trunks for them to build their nests on. This link (Rethmoorsee ) for example shows a flooded gravel pit that used to be a bathing lake. Later on the construction of a new railway track involved the removal of such trunks, so the federal railway erected several more around this location, which had been converted to a natural reserve a while earlier. While I didn't see one from close up when I was there, I do know that several breeding pairs of white-tailed eagles have their aeries there, so it's safe to say the project is a success!
Regarding cameras, I know what you mean! I used to have an older compact camera (a Kodak Z650 Easyshare), and the autofocus was painfully slow. In order to take pictures of moving animals, especially birds, a good DSLR with a fast lens is a must. Since my camera is pretty much at the low end of the spectrum and my lens not that fast, the only way I could make that shot was because the eagle was soaring rather slowly over our heads. Quite a bit of luck was involved, since it was unusual to see an eagle approach a field full of people (where a peddler's market was being held)!
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Thanks! ^.^ It's great that people are helping the white tailed eagles, after all it was people who nearly wiped them out, so it's only right to help them! The reason, or rather, reasons, that I don't have a better camera is because I don't have the money for it (and my parents won't buy me one, until I finish high school >.<) and I still need to learn tons about photography and cameras. Hopefully the photography class I'm taking will help me! :3
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Yup, it is. 
That's sad, but I understand. I couldn't really afford one for a long time myself (and I wasn't sure if it was even worth it), and when I finally did buy a DSLR it was after I had lost my job (but saved up a bit of money). Had I known that I would be unemployed for a long time anyway, and how much photography would mean to me just one or two years down the road, I would have blown all my money on photography gear back then! However, right now I'm pretty much broke, so I have to make do with what I have again
You're taking a photography class? That's fantastic! I never got around to taking any classes or courses (self-taught photographer here!), but I guess it does make a huge difference in learning the basics!
If you don't mind reading, by the way, I *highly* recommend the book Stunning Digital Photography by Tony Northrup. It's the #1 best-selling photography book worldwide, but more importantly, it is enjoyable to read, and there are tons of tutorial videos on youtube meant as supplement to the book (and new videos being added every few days). The paperback (+eBook) is available for 19.99USD, just buying the eBook is half of that. Easily the best money I spent on photography so far!
If you're interested: sdpcommunity.com/index.php?/paβ¦
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People don't think things through enough, that's why those things happen... I'm just glad people are trying to make things right.
The fact that I can't buy myself a good camera is partly due to the fact that I really don't know what a good camera is, and also the fact that I'm not old enough to get a job.
I'm glad I figured out I wanted to be a photographer when I was about eleven, because now I'm in highschool and the school I go to offers two photography classes! Another thing is, my best friend wants to help me, and is taking the same photography classes (unfortunately at different times of the day though). As for the book, I'll probably look into it! I have three old books (1970's) on photography, but that probably won't help me too much now. >.< They were free though so I took them, or rather, I was given them. heh
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If you're really good at saving money, you could try and put most of your pocket money aside and tell people to give you money for your birthday, christmas, etc. instead of gifts.
Regarding the camera, the best thing for you would be to get a digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR) as upgrade. Point-and-shoot and other compact cameras won't do in terms of quality (unless you *really* spend a lot of money on one), and while mirrorless cameras with interchangeable lenses are becoming better and more affordable, they don't offer quite the same range of lenses and other equipment as DSLRs. And there are other advantages as well: A DSLR allows you manual control over all important options if you wish, as well as shooting in RAW format (important for post-processing).
Canon and Nikon are IMHO the most versatile manufacturers because of the large amount of lenses and gear. Some options you may want to look at are:
Canon EOS Rebel T5: amzn.com/B00QFSGJR4 <- some very interesting bundles are available here, though I would recommend against buying a telephoto lens without Image Stabilization (IS)! This camera is basically the successor of the one I use, the T3 / 1100D.
Canon EOS Rebel T3i: amzn.com/B004J3V90Y <- Actually the next model 'above' the T3i, this is still of the same generation of the old T3, so it may not be better than the T5 unless you absolutely want a swiveling LCD screen.
Nikon D3300: amzn.com/B00HQ4W1QE <- A great choice as entry-level DSLR, since it's more on par with the low-to-mid-range models of Canon, and for a very fair price at that.
(One more piece of advice/warning: If you decide for one manufacturer you are probably going to stick with it, so choose wisely! Generally speaking, many would agree that Nikon does produce the better and more sturdy cameras overall, but the overall selection of lenses and gear - partly by third-party manufacturers as well - is more limited. Plus, many of their cameras and lenses are more expensive than their Canon counterparts. I've heard professional photographers say that Nikon is the better option for landscape and architecture photography, but the extra lenses available may make Canon more attractive to portrait, wildlife or sports photographers. Just a FYI. 
You're lucky to have figured it out at such an early age, by the way! It gives you a HUGE head start in learning techniques and such. I wish I would have figured it out half as early, since I didn't really start taking photography more serious until after my 28th birthday!
In any case, it's great that you have some books to rely on. The basics on exposure and composition still apply, and you may even pick up very handy information specific to analog cameras.
The book I recommended would probably make a good addition to those, since it focuses exclusively on digital photography.
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I'm pretty good at saving money, I've been saving my money since I was about nine, and now that my mom is on disability (long storyΒ ) I have quite a bit of money in my bank account! I'm just waiting till I understand more of the terminology and things in photography.
I really have no idea what a lot of that means, but I will probably know what it means after I learn more XD! Though is Canon is better for wildlife, I'll probably get a camera from than company!
I'm pretty sure I figured it out so early because my mom let me play with her camera when I was little, and I always when straight to my fish tank! Fish were the only pets I had when I was little, but when we moved we got two dogs and a cat. Over the years we've gathered another cat (who ran away earlier this year), a turtle, a gecko, and for a little while we had 9 minnows.
When I got the books, I also got two cameras from the same person, I'm not sure how old the cameras are, but they both need film, and look a bit older. One of the cameras is very similar to the cameras that the photography class I'm taking uses, so I might figure out how to use it properly!
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Glad to hear you're good at saving money! It's great to have a little extra on the side so you don't have to start at square one when you finally decide on what to buy.
That's okay! Truth be told, when I was your age the most I knew about photography was most likely how to press the shutter button. 
Two analog cameras plus books for free? That's a great deal in my book.
So if you can find out what kind of cameras you have you should be able to find old user manuals online (i.e. here: butkus.org/chinon/index.html ). Reading through these is a great way to spend a rainy afternoon!
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That camera looks nearly exactly like one of the ones I have!! The only that looks different is the color (which may be due to lighting) and the lens length (I don't know if it can zoom yet, I tried to take a picture with it and it made sounds which scared me >.<) Depending on how many cameras you've gotten that might be quite a task! I'll probably start trying to read more during summer break. I never have anything to do in the summer anyway!
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Now that's cool! You can check the camera for its name, it should be somewhere on it (i.e. on the right front, like it is on mine). The color can surely be different, as the FM2 was available in all black as well as silver/black. If it is one of these, consider yourself lucky! It's an amazing piece of photography history as well as as a great and reliable camera to use. It is fully manual and mechanical, so it doesn't need any batteries except for two tiny 3V batteries to power the light meter (A76 or S76 batteries, I think).
As for the lens it is likely that your camera simply has a different one mounted, probably a Nikkor lens. The one you see in my picture is a different one because the previous owner decided to get a Sigma 35-70mm zoom lens instead of the standard Nikkor lens (50mm, I think?) when he bought it in New York in 1986. So if yours does not zoom, it's a prime lens, and the focal length has to be printed somewhere on it.
Sounds that scared you?! Now that does sound weird. The only sounds these cameras should make when operating them are the shutter release (can be quite loud compared to some DSLRs), when advancing the film manually, or when you have a motor drive mounted beneath the camera that advances the film automatically after taking a picture. Other than that it shouldn't make a sound. o_O
Anyway, if it is indeed a Nikon FM2, here's the (interesting!) wikipedia article about it: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikon_FMβ¦
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I have plenty of time to look for it (I'm sick and out of school for a week). It just scared me because I wasn't expecting it, and I'm very skittish anyway, so a lot of things startle me. I'll probably end up finding out what kind of camera it is sometime soon though.
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Oh, I'm sorry to hear that! Hopefully you will get better soon.
One thing I forgot to say earlier about the old cameras I got: Overall there are four of them - two fully manual cameras (Nikon FM2 & Zenit-E), one semi-automatic (Mamiya NC1000S) and an automatic half-frame camera (Konica AA35, known as Konica Recorder in the US). And my dad also has two older cameras I would like to use some time (Olympus ACE-E and Revue-4). Guess all of these will keep me occupied for a while! Which is a good thing, since I don't have any space left to collect even more cameras right now
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That sounds like it'll keep you busy for a while. o.o My cat just ran under my bed after stealing my cookie ._. I didn't even know she liked cookies.
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Heh, now you know to keep your cookies hidden from your cat!
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I guess so! I didn't notice until I saw my plate move (i would have heard it but I was listening to music). I looked Over at her and she just snatched it and ran! I was just like 'did that just happen? My cat is a cookie thief.'
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I was at a Disney park called animal kingdom and they had these running around in a sanctuary. It has to be one one the most colorful birds i have ever seen. Thank you for sharing your great photography.
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Thank you!
Yes, definitely one of the most colorful birds I know as well. The females of this species look great as well with their stripes, but their lack of color makes them appear as different as you would expect from an entirely different species. It's fascinating how the visible difference between bird genders can range from drastic to non-existant.
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Great capture! These guys just amaze me with the way they look... It's incredible some of the creatures nature has come up with.
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Thank you!
And I agree, nature never ceases to amaze me. Plus, we don't even need to look for rare or exotic beings in faraway regions to see beautiful or otherwise fascinating plants or animals... All too easily we overlook the everyday wonders around us.
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Thanks!
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WOW. This is awesome. It must have been somewhat tame for you to get that close!or you have really good zoom
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It's a caged bird, unfortunately. The biggest issues were getting close enough to the grid of the aviary (so that it wouldn't show up in the photo), getting the head of the pheasant in focus and finding the right combination of shutter speed, ISO and exposure. As you can see, I had to resort to 1/25th at ISO 800 to get it properly exposed; this would've been absolutely impossible at 300mm without image stabilization (called "Vibration Compensation" in that lens). I'm just glad the bird decided to pose still for just long enough to get this done without having him appear as a rainbow of blurriness
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Well, however you managed it, this is definitely worth the time you put into capturing the moment.Β
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